


Miscalculation

by Magical_Persona



Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018)
Genre: Blood and Gore, Canon-Typical Violence, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-18 04:54:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29362815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magical_Persona/pseuds/Magical_Persona
Summary: In the middle of a fight Donnie's battle shell is damage, but he miscalculates just how long it takes for the replacement to get to him.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 51





	Miscalculation

He should have known better than to change his battle shell in the middle of a fight. Donnie should have at least had better timing! He should have noticed the mutated wolf man nearly on top of him when he released his damaged battle shell a moment too early. He should have calculated the extra five seconds the turtle tank’s release would take. All the things he should have done were running through his head as the wolf simply batted the battle shell aside, leaving Donnie completely exposed.

Donnie turned to face the creature, holding his techno bo defensively in front of him. There was nothing else he could do.He couldn’t turn tail and run. It was far too dangerous and everyone else was dealing with their own wolves at the moment. He couldn’t run to Raph or Leo like he normally would have. He had no one to protect his back. Donnie was standing in the middle of Times Square, exposed to the cold rain running down his leathery shell as he tried to avoid the dagger sized teeth snapping far too close to his head.

The purple clad turtle raised his bo staff to take a swipe at the mutant. The wolf simply grabbed the titanium stuff as if it were a stick. He shook Donnie off, sending the turtle sprawling to the ground, landing on his back and letting out a cry of pain as he hit the unforgiving asphalt. He thought he heard someone shout his name, but anything after that was lost as a boom of thunder shook the buildings around them.

Donnie was almost to his feet when the wolf decided his techno bo was no longer interesting. The smartest turtle saw those teeth flash as a bolt of lightning streaked through the sky. One minute they were in his line of sight and the next there was a searing pain in his shoulder as those teeth tore through the thin excuse for a shell. This time he screamed. It felt like his entire shoulder was on fire as the wolf lifted his feet from the ground and shook him like a rag doll rather than the human sized turtle that he was.

Tears streaked down his face as he reached into his pouch and pulled out a small button. With what strength he had left he slammed the device onto the wolf. The minute Donnie pressed the button a strong electric charge ran through the both of them. The wolf howled in pain, dropping Donnie to the unforgiving wet street once more. This time the turtle landed on his stomach.

Blood ran down his shoulder as he tried to see his brother’s through the driving rain. They were fighting their own battles. Donnie could make out the shadow of Mikey, backlit by his flaming nunchaku. He heard Leo drop one of his terrible puns and he could hear Raph’s shout of rage as that red glow enveloped his hands. All of them were busy, engrossed in battles they could handle. They didn’t have time to look in his direction and they shouldn’t have to. He was supposed to be able to take care of himself.

Donnie tried to force himself to his feet, but the second his hands were under him he felt the weight of claws against his soft shell. The freezing cold rain running down his face was nothing compared to the icy chill of dread that seeped through his veins. It took seconds for the wolf’s sharp claws to tear into Donnie’s leathery shell. He tried to reach for the techno bo, which had fallen just out of reach, but the wolf only dug his claws deeper into the soft shell that offered no protection. A choked scream left him as he did the only thing he could think of.

“Leo!” He didn’t even recognize the voice as his own when it hit the air. It was filled with pain and twisted to a higher pitch. Donnie didn’t care. His own pride meant very little when the difference was literally life or death and he knew without a doubt his brothers felt the same.

The wolf stomped on his already shredded back, leaning over the turtle so those large teeth were so close to Donnie’s head.

“I hear a turtle’s shell is basically their spine,” the wolf growled and all Donnie’s racing mind could focus on was the drool hanging from those large teeth. “Let’s see what happens if I rip you out of it!”

Between the sound of his heart beating in his ears and the blood rushing through him he had enough sense to realize this was it. He was going to die here, in the middle of time square and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it. He could already feel his eyes trying to close despite the adrenaline coursing through him. He’d lost too much blood. He didn’t have the strength to lift his head, let alone fight back. This was it. This was the end for him.

The last thing he saw before the world went black was Leo rushing toward him. His twin was screaming, though the sound was muffled. Donnie knew he wasn’t going to make it in time. Leo had simply been too far away to help. Donnie’s eyes fell closed just as Leo jumped over his brother, slamming the twin swords into the wolf’s chest, throwing the mutant backwards.

Leo chased the mutant wolf down, jumping and landing directly on the wolf’s chest. He forced the air from the creature’s lungs and felt a few ribs break and crack under his weight. Leo couldn’t have stopped the wicked smile that twisted his features even if he wanted to. The lightning illuminated the nictitating membrane causing his eyes to become a nearly glowing white in the dark night.

He glared down at the wolf below his feet, the tip of his katana resting just above the mutant’s throat. It would be so easy to tear this thing apart just like it had done to his twin. To let this creature, this monster feel the same pain Donnie had been in. Donnie, who was now laying a few feet away, blood dying the puddles around him.

“That’s the last time you hurt anyone,” Leo growled, raising his sword. He would have plunged it straight through the mutant’s throat if Mikey hadn’t grabbed his hand.

“Wait!” Mikey’s voice was sharp in his ear. “Leon, if you kill him you aren’t any better than he is. Please.”

Leo lowered his sword, eyes blinking as the nictitating membrane retreated to reveal deep brown eyes. He leaned heavily on his little brother as Mikey led him away. Even through the driving rain they could easily see Raph’s huge form leaning over Donnie’s body. The snapping turtle had his hand in front of Donnie’s mouth as the two approached.

Raph looked to Leo, a combination of hope and fear swimming in those watery red eyes. “He’s still breathing Leo. He’s still alive.”

“We need to get him home,” Leo’s voice was devoid of inflection. He felt the hit of exhaustion and fear draining his very being. “I’ll make the portal. Raph, you’ll have to carry him.”

The oldest brother carefully slipped his large hands under Donnie’s limp frame. As he held his brother to his chest he felt the tears begin to run down his cheeks. He’d always known his brothers were smaller than him. It was why he was the one who took the hits. Why he tried to rush in before anyone could think to get a hit in on the smaller turtles. He’d never realized just how much smaller than him he brothers really were.

Even Donnie seemed tiny as Raph cradled the younger twin against his plastron. He was mindful of the shell, keeping Donnie on his stomach rather than a proper carry. Raph tried not to look at the deep gashes that streaked across that fragile shell. He tried to ignore the blood he could feel dripping down his arms and the way the deep red streaked across his plastron, nearly matching the shade of his mask.

Try as he might to ignore it, Raph found that his eyes wandered down to the turtle in his arms. He could see the bone beneath that was supposed to be protected by a shell. If it had been anyone else they would have been fine. It wouldn’t have been this bad, but Donnie never stood a chance. The minute the thin protective shell he wore around the house was gone Donnie had been at risk.

Maybe if Raph had noticed. If he hadn’t been so involved in his own battle. If he’d been paying attention to the entire battle field like a proper leader. If he’d been doing what his brothers relied on him to do none of this would have happened. If Raph had been there to put himself between Donnie and that wolf they would be getting pizza right now. They wouldn’t be rushing home as their brother’s life hung in the balance.

Raph didn’t remember stepping through Leo’s portal. He only became aware that he could see the full extent of Donnie’s wounds when the bright lights of their little medbay seemed to pride themselves on their cruelty.

“That’s…” Raph couldn’t get over just how much of his little brother’s insides he could see. “There’s so much blood.”

Leo placed a cold hand on Raph’s arm. “I know. It’s gonna be alright. I just need to get him sewn up, alright?”

‘Sewn up.’ The words repeated themselves over and over in his mind. They swirled around his thoughts, consuming anything else that might be able to push through. He didn’t realize he’d placed Donnie on the table until his arms felt lighter. With wide panicked eyes he reached for his younger brother only to find Mikey hugging him.

“We’re here,” Mikey’s voice was soft as he tucked against Raph the way he had since he was small. “We’re all here. Leo’s gonna fix Donnie up and then we can have a  _ huge _ group hug and watch some Jupiter Jim.”

Mikey looked up at Raph, those blue eyes filled with worry and tears. The only thing Raph could do was pull the youngest turtle into a tight hug.

“Yeah, little buddy,” Raph’s voice was rough as the tears he thought his eyes had run out of started again.

Leo gave a weak smile in his brothers’ direction before turning to the unconscious turtle laying on the table. He would have been glad that Raph and Mikey had that much faith in him, if it hadn’t been so terrifying. They were relying on him to fix this, fix their brother--his twin. Fix Donnie as if they had any idea how difficult that was. They knew it was bad, but they hadn’t filled their brains with every single medical text and how to field medic videos they could find on the internet.

He quickly went to work cleaning out and drying Donnie’s shell. Leo winced every time Donnie groaned or whimpered, but he could at least be thankful the nerd was still alive. It took him far longer than he’d hoped to even see just how much damage had been done. Flesh had been torn away from bone and there were cuts so deep Leo swore he could see organs struggling to keep his brother alive.

He looked at the thread sitting in the first aid kit and wondered if it would even do any good. So much of what he was looking at was shredded. He wasn’t even sure where to start or even if he  _ should _ . He took a deep breath, threading the needle before turning to his brothers.

“Raph,” Leo’s voice was gentle. “Why don’t you get yourself cleaned up. Hopefully, I’ll be finished here by the time you're done and I can tend to you and Mikey.”

“Are you sure you don’t need our help?” Raph asked, looking between Donnie and Leo.

Leo sighed. “Your pacing is distracting. Knowing you’re taking care of yourself instead of stressing would be far more helpful.”

Raph looked like he was about to argue, he opened his mouth and took a step forward, but Leo’s eyes looked dead. Like he was trying so hard not to feel anything that the older brother couldn’t find it in him to put up a fight.

Mikey watched Raph leave before looking at Leo. “What should I do?”

“I’m gonna be honest with you Miguel. I’m about to give you the most important job. I need you to find every pillow and blanket we have, grab the laptop, and then make some hot chocolate.”

“I’m not a child anymore Leon,” Mikey huffed as he crossed his arms. “But I am always down for the ‘we avoided near death’ cocoa and movie marathon.” He was about to leave when he turned back to his brother. “How much sugar would you like in yours?”

“As much as chemically possible.” Came Leo’s response, though he’d turned his attention back to Donnie’s battered shell.

It was minutes later, though they dragged on to make it seem like hours, when Leo finished placing the patches made specifically for Donnie’s shell. He couldn’t remember what they were made out of specifically. Just that they weren’t the normal fiberglass patches because Donnie wasn’t exactly a normal turtle.

At least Donnie was still breathing. After the past hour he’d take what he could get. Mikey had been creating a nest of blankets and pillows on the other side of the table and was rushing off to grab the mugs of cocoa when Raph walked in.

“How is he?” Raph’s voice was quiet, but it felt like a boom of thunder even the whirring of Donnie’s tech couldn’t help to cover.

“Stable,” Leo replied as he stretched, arms popping. “We’ll just have to watch him until he wakes up.”

Raph nodded, settling down in the blankets while Leo settled down beside him. The two of them sat in silence, watching the loading screen of a no doubt bootlegged Jupiter Jim movie. Leo took the opportunity to make sure Raph hadn’t been hurt badly. There were a few scrapes and bruises, but nothing that really needed attention. Donnie really had been the only one injured. Not for the first time Leo wished Donnie had been born as something different. A different type of turtle or hell even a different animal. Something that could protect itself.

Leo looked at the battle shell that was Donnie’s current project. Leo had thrown it to the floor in his haste to clear the table. Donnie could protect himself, he just needed to create to do it. That’s why he’d been the one to inherit all the brain cells.

Mikey returned with three steaming mugs of cocoa, settling himself on the other side of Raph as the first of many Jupiter Jim movies began to play.

Leo wasn’t entirely sure when he woke, just that something brushed against his shoulder. His eyes snapped open, but he didn’t move, too many times sneaking up on his brothers and being snuck up on let him know you had the advantage if they didn’t know you were awake.

“Woke ya,” Donnie’s voice cracked as he spoke and all Leo could do was smile.

“Welcome back to the land of the living,” Leo lifted his head to get a better look at the turtle laying on the table above him. “How ya feelin’?”

“Like I was used as a chew toy.”

Leo couldn’t stop the snort that left him.

“And I missed the ‘we didn’t die’ cocoa and movies,” Donnie sighed, though it quickly turned into a cough.

“Easy, there,” Leo’s voice was soft as he disentangled himself from the blankets and Raph’s arm. “I’ll grab you some water.”

Just before Leo could leave he heard Donnie’s quiet voice over the credits of Jupiter Jim Return to the Moon Five.

“How long until I can wear a shell?”

Leo froze. His twin had sounded so scared, his voice on the edge of shaking. Donnie was rarely without one of his shells. Half the time he even slept in the thinner padded one he wore around the house. But even that would be too heavy for the damage his shell had sustained.

“I don’t know, Don.” Leo replied quietly, voice cracking as he pushed it past the lump in his throat. “I don’t know.”


End file.
